Thermally operated dischargers of condensation water



M r 1965- HANS-MARTIN PAPE ETAL 3,175,766

THERMALLY OPERATED DISCHARGERS OF CONDENSATION WATER Filed March 27, 1963 hue/71ers.-

H. N. Pa ne a J.Ll.'n5nau as (5L; much gum- ATTORNIESS United States This invention relates to thermally operated dischargers of condensation water and refers more particularly to bimetallic expanding members used to operate such dischargers depending upon temperature conditions. The bimetallic member usually has the shape of a column consisting of superposed bimetallic plates arranged in pairs of plates which curve in opposite directions. The plates are provided with bearing rims or edges which are located in one plane and which serve to provide mutual support for the plates.

Rigid spacer discs may be located between the pairs of plates for the purpose of providing an intermediate space between adjacent plate pairs, so that the fluid being discharged will be able to thoroughly scour the outer surfaces of each pair of plates from all sides, thereby providing the greatest possible sensitivity of response of the bimetallic column.

In order to better adapt the thermally operated condensation water dischargers to the line of the saturated steam, the closing force exerted by the bimetallic column,

which is opposed to the working pressure, may be transmitted to a shut-off member through an additional resilient member, such as a helical spring, located outside of the pairs of plates and connected to the shut-off member. The use of this resilient member makes it possible to influence the bimetallic column, the closing force of which acts against the working pressure in such manner that in the lower pressure range it starts by acting in a soft elastic manner while in the upper pressure range it will act more and more in a hard elastic manner, so that its operation within a wide pressure range can be adapted to the parabolically extending saturated steam line.

An object of the present invention is to improve prior art constructions of the described type.

- Other objects of the present invention will become apparent in the course of the following specification.

In accordance with the present invention spacer discs located between the plate pairs consist of spring members. Preferably one or more plate springs are used as resilient spacer discs.

The provision of the resilient spacer discs of the present invention makes it possible to eliminate the additional resilient members; this is particularly advantageous as far as the necessary height of the bimetallic column and particularly the size of the armature casing are concerned.

According to another feature of the present invention it is possible to use spring members the forces of resiliency of which have different effects and are so graded that the curve of the closing force is adapted to the saturated steam line in a particularly ideal manner.

In accordance with a further feature of the present invention which was found to be particularly advantageous, the spacer discs in their cold state consist of fiat bimetallic discs which form spring members only after being heated. This eliminates the diminution of the flow passage, i.e., of the amount of flow in kp./h., Which results from the fact that prior art additional resilient members in their cold state already cause a feed of the shutoif member in the closing direction, so that a diminution of the flow cross-section sets in automatically.

atent hllifihe The invention will appear more clearly from the following detailed description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawing showing by way of example, preferred embodiments of the inventive idea.

In the drawing:

FIGURES 1 and 1a illustrate partly in section and partly in side elevation the bimetallic column of the present invention, the column along with the spacer discs being placed directly upon the valve rod of a discharger of condensation water; FIGURE 1 shows one half of the device in its open position, while FIGURE 1a shows the other half of the device in its closed position.

FIGURE 2 is a section along the lines IIII of FIG- URES l and la.

FIGURE 3 is partly a section and partly a side elevation of a bimetallic column having spacer discs with different spring forces.

FIGURE 4 is partly a section and partly a side elevation illustrating the use of several resilient spacer discs between two pairs of plates of the bimetallic column.

FIGURE 5 is partly a section and partly a side elevation showing a bimetallic column guided and held by additional pins and having angular bimetallic plates.

FIGURE 6 is a section along the line VIVI of FIG- URE 5.

FIGURE 7 shows in section a resilient spacer disc which was found to be particularly effective, in its relieved state.

FIGURE 7a shows the same disc under load.

FIGURES 8 and 8a illustrate partly in section and partly in side elevation a bimetallic column having resilient spacer discs of bimetal; FIGURE 8 shows one half or" the device in its open position, while FIGURE 8:: shows the other half of the device in its closed position.

The same numerals designate similar parts throughout the drawing.

The discharger casing which is not shown in the drawing is divided by a separating Wall 1 into an inflow chamber and an outflow chamber. An outlet opening 3 pro vided in the wall 1 connects the two chambers. A regu lating and closing member 2 having a rod 4 is used to close the opening 3. The expanding member carried by the rod 4 consists of a column of bimetallic plates 5 arranged in pairs one over the other, whereby the plates when heated will curve in opposite directions (FIGS. 1a and 8a). The valve rod 4 extends through central openings 6 provided in the plates 5; its upper threaded end carries a nut engaging the uppermost plates.

In accordance with the present invention spring members are used in lieu of prior art rigid spacer discs in order to better adapt the course of the closing force to the course of the saturated steam line.

The embodiment shown in FIGS. 1, la and 2 illustrates plate springs '7 located between pairs of round bimetallic plates 5. The construction shown in FIG. 3 illustrates the use of plate springs 7a, 7b and 7c of different strengths. Such springs having different resiliency can produce a graded total resilient force the characteristics of which will assure a particularly advantageously development of the force.

Obviously, it is possible to provide several plate springs between two adjacent pairs of bimetallic plates. FIG- URE 4 shows a construction wherein two opposed plate springs 7 and 7d are located between adjacent pairs of bimetallic plates 5.

FIGURES 5 and 6 illustrate a construction wherein rectangular bimetallic plates 54: are used. The plates 5a are prevented from turning by special guide pins 8 mounted in the wall ll. Furthermore, this construction shows that round plate springs may be replaced by springs of any other suitable form, for example, leaf springs. FIG- URE 6 illustrates an elongated spring 7e as well as an underlying rectangular resilient spacer 7 1 shown by broken lines.

FIGURES 7 and 7a show a resilient spacer disc provided with a stop for limiting the stroke o'f the disc, in order to prevent excessive load upon the disc and thus avoid fatigue of material. For that purpose the spacer disc 7g has an inwardly extending annular flange 10 enclosing the central opening 9 of the disc. The flange 10 permits only a predetermined resilient extent of movement for the spring member. It is advisable to set this permissible range of spring movement so; that it will terminate before the maximum operational pressure is reached since this facilitates a particularly good adaptation to the saturated steam line.

FIGURES 8 and 8a show a construction wherein bimetallic discs 711 are located between pairs of bimetallic plates 5 of any suitable form. The discs 7h constituting the resilient spacer discs have the shape of flat bimetallic discs when cold and they constitute spring bodies only when heated T6 provide the required adaptation of the closing force of the bimetallic column to the saturation steam line, the main operational range of the bimetallic plates 5 is advantageously confined to the weekly curved part thereof, i.e., to the higher pressure range of the saturation steam line, while in the lower pressure range, namely, in the greatly curved part of the saturation steam line, primarily the spacer disc's should be active. The use of bimetallic spacer discs 712 was found to be particularly advantageous; preferably, they have a lesser thickness than the bimetallic plates 5, so that they have a corresponding lift force even when the rise in temperature is very small. To this force of the discs 711 is added the lift force of the bimetallic plates 5 which is initially small but which radual y becomes stronger and stronger, until, when e temperatureis further increased, it overcomes the force of the bimetallic spacer discs 7/1 and gradually 'pushes them back into their initial fiat shape, so that they form fa piick again and their action is switched oil; theaters, for the upper pressure range only the greater terms of the bimetallic plates 5 come into full effect.

Obviously, several of such bimetallic discs 711 can be provided between two adjacent pairs of plates 5, and the arrangement can be such that the discs 7h will move either in the same direction or in opposite directions. It is also possible to use bimetallic spacer discs of different thicknesses. Furthermore, it is possible to use discs of any desired form adapted to specific constructional purposes.

It is thus apparent that the examples shown above have been given solely by way of illustration and not by way of limitation and that they are subject to many variations and modifications. For example, other types and shapes of springs can be used without exceeding the scope of the present invention. The shapes ofthe springs do not have to be necessarily related to the shapes of the bimetallic plates, which can be round as well as angular, and in cold state can be flat or curved. Obviously, it is possible P Cvide the spring members not only between pairs of springs, but in addition, also at the upper and lower ends of the bimetallic column. All such and other variations and modifications are to be included within the scope of the present invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In a discharger of condensation water having a shut-off member and a valve rod connected with said shut-off member; a bimetallic column operatively connected with said valve rod and comprising, in combination, superposed pairs of bimetallic plates, each pair consisting of plates which are fiat when cold and which curve in opposite directions when heated while remaining in contact with each other along their outer edges, and a separate resilient spacer member having a portion g ng a surface of a bimetallic disc of one pair, another P n engaging. a surface of a bimetallic disc of another pair, and an intermediate portion extending be tween said two portions at an acute angle to and out of contact with said surfaces when said plates are heated, the resiliency of said resilient spacer members being graded to the lower range of the saturation steam line andthe resiliency of the heated bimetallic plates being graded to the upper range of the saturation steam line.

2. In a discharger of condensation water having a shut-off member and a valve rod connected with said shut-off member; a bimetallic column operatively connected with said valve rod and comprising, in combination, superposed pairs of bimetallic plates, each pair consisting of plates which are flat when cold and which curve in opposite directions when heated while remaining in contact with each other along their outer edges, and a separate resilient spacer member having a portion engaging a surface of a bimetallic disc of one pair, another portion engaging a surface of a bimetallic disc of another pair, and an intermediate portion extending between said two portions at an acute angle to and out of contact with said surfaces when said plates are heated, at least some of said resilient spacer members having different thicknesses and different resilient forces set in conformity with the saturated steam line.

3. In a discharger of condensation Water having a shut-off member and a valve rod connected with said shut-off member; a bimetallic column operatively connected with said valve rod and comprising, in combination, superposed pairs of bimetallic plates, each pair consisting of plates which are flat when cold and which curve in opposite directions when heated while remaining in contact with each other along their outer edges and a separate set of interengaging resilient spacer discs be tween two adjacent pairs of bimetallic plates, said set comprising one resilient spacer disc having a portion engaging a surface of a bimetallic disc of one pair, another resilient spacer disc having a portion engaging a surface of a bimetallic disc of another pair, said resilient spacer discs having intermediate portions extending at an acute angle to and out of contact with said surfaces.

4. A bimetallic column in accordance with claim El, wherein said spacer cliscs extend in opposite directions.

5. In a discharger of condensation water having a shut-off member and a valve rod connected with said shut-oil member; a bimetallic column operatively connected with said valve rod and comprising, in combination, superposed pairs of bimetallic plates, each pair consisting of plates which are fiat when cold and which curve in opposite directions when heated while remaining in contact with each other along their outer edges, and resilient spacer discs between two adjacent pairs of bimetallic plates, said spacer discs extending at an acute angle to and out of contact with adjacent surfaces of bimetallic plates and having means limiting the stroke of the disc's.

6. A bimetallic column in accordance with clalm 5, wherein said resilient spacer discs are frusto-conical in shape and wherein the stroke-limiting means consist of an inwardly directed annular flange enclosing a central opening formed in each resilient spacer dlSC.

7. In a discharger of condensation water having a shutoff member and a valve rod connected with said shut otf member; a bimetallic column operatively connected Wl'tl'l said valve rod and comprising, in combinanon, supernosed pairs of bimetallic plates, and a separate spring inember located between adjacent pairs of bimetallic plates, said spring members consisting of bimetalllc spacer discs which are flat when cold and which acquire resiliency and extend at an acute angle to and out of contact with adjacent surfaces of bimetallic plates when 2,912,166 Domnick Nov. 10, 1959 

1. IN A DISCHARGER OF CONDENSATION WATER HAVING A SHUT-OFF MEMBER AND A VALVE ROD CONNECTED WITH SAID SHUT-OFF MEMBER; A BIMETALLIC COLUMN OPERATIVELY CONNECTED WITH SAID VALVE ROD AND COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, SUPERPOSED PAIRS OF BIMETALLIC PLATES, EACH PAIR CONSISTING OF PLATES WHICH ARE FLAT WHEN COLD AND WHICH CURVE IN OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS WHEN HEATED WHILE REMAINING IN CONTACT WITH EACH OTHER ALONG THEIR OUTER EDGES, AND A SEPARATE RESILIENT SPACER MEMBER HAVING A PORTION ENGAGING A SURFACE OF A BIMETALLIC DISC OF ONE PAIR, ANOTHER PORTION ENGAGING A SURFACE OF A BIMETALLIC DISC OF ANOTHER PAIR, AND AN INTERMEDIATE PORTION EXTENDING BETWEEN SAID TWO PORTIONS AT AN ACUTE ANGLE TO AND OUT OF CONTACT WITH SAID SURFACES WHEN SAID PLATES ARE HEATED, THE RESILIENCY OF SAID RESILIENT SPACER MEMBERS BEING GRADED TO THE LOWER RANGE OF THE SATURATION STEAM LINE AND THE RESILIENCY OF THE HEATED BIMETALLIC PLATES BEING GRADED TO THE UPPER RANGE OF THE SATURATION STEAM LINE. 